Hayes chasing double

Press, 16 June 1983, Page 32

Hayes chasing double

By TIM DUNBAR At the Ashburton Squash Rackets Club this week-end Manurewa’s Rod Hayes will seek to become only the second player to win both the North and South Island men’s titles in the same year. The only person so far to have managed that double was the little india-rubber man from Palmerston North, Charlie Waugh, five times New Zealand champion, back in 1960. Hayes completed the first leg in Napier a fortnight ago and is favoured to win again this week-end. He now has an overwhelming lead on the Adidas national circuit, having already won the Bay of

Plenty, North Island, and Canterbury championships. The man most likely to meet Hayes in the final is Paul Viggers (Sumner), an exciting stroke-player who has already pushed the Auckland player hard in both the North Island and Canterbury titles. There is an excellent entry for the men’s championships with eight players from the top 20 on the national seeding list in the draw.

Besides Hayes, No. 3, and Viggers, No. 7, there is Anthony McMurtrie (Hamilton), No. 8, John Mills (Scottish Harriers, Wellington), No. 10, David Oakley (Mitchell Park), No 11, Tony Fuller (Whakatane), No. 14,

Carl Koenig (North Shore), No. 18. and Tony Brettkelly (Hamilton), No. 19.

McMurtrie, a young player who dives round the floor so much that he almost needs knee pads, is seeded to meet Viggers in one semi-final, while Hayes should meet Mills in the other. Both McMurtrie and Fuller, the 1982 national junior champion, have been assisted to the tournament by the New Zealand Squash Rackets Association.

The draw for the first round tomorrow evening is:—

MEN: Hayes v. Wayne Seebeck (Christchurch), Brettkelly v. Robbie Burnett (Lin-

wood), Oakley v. Craig Hibbert (Linwood), Malcolm Thomson (Ashburton) v. Mills. McMurtrie v. John Knight (H. 5.0.8. Rex McDonald (Timaru Celtic) v. Fuller, Koenig v. Mark Crosbie (Burnside), Danny Lyons (Timaru v. Viggers.

WOMEN: Milne v. Jan McAra (Makarewa). Merle Holland (Sumner) v. Susan Wasley (Burnside), Jillian Oakley (Mitchell Park) v. Justine Marriott (Sumner), Lorna Symes (Timaru) v. McClure. Butler v. Jacqui James (Blues, Invercargill), Czesia Bowan (Temuka) v. Kate Carpinter (Sumner), Freda Walker (Oamaru) v. Jane Sinclair (Timaru), Joan Terrell (Sumner) v. Gurran.